Trips Places Foods Stories Newsletters

Take your next trip with Atlas Obscura!

Our small-group adventures are inspired by our Atlas of the world's most fascinating places, the stories behind them, and the people who bring them to life.

Visit Adventures
Trips Highlight
Central Asia yurt night stars
Uzbekistan • 15 days, 14 nights
Central Asia Road Trip: Backroads & Bazaars
from
A view of Brașov’s Old Town.
Romania • 12 days, 11 nights
Legends of Romania: Castles, Ruins & Culinary Delights
from
View all trips
Top Destinations
Latest Places
Most Popular Places Random Place Lists Itineraries
Add a Place
Download the App
Top Destinations
View All Destinations »

Countries

  • Australia
  • Canada
  • China
  • France
  • Germany
  • India
  • Italy
  • Japan

Cities

  • Amsterdam
  • Barcelona
  • Beijing
  • Berlin
  • Boston
  • Budapest
  • Chicago
  • London
  • Los Angeles
  • Mexico City
  • Montreal
  • Moscow
  • New Orleans
  • New York City
  • Paris
  • Philadelphia
  • Rome
  • San Francisco
  • Seattle
  • Stockholm
  • Tokyo
  • Toronto
  • Vienna
  • Washington, D.C.
Latest Places
View All Places »
Pinal Airpark
Note the chrysanthemum crests.
Hachiman Bridge
Clarendon War Memorial.
Clarendon War Memorial
This fried chicken is one of Bangkok’s most famous.
Gai Tord Jae Kee
Latest Places to Eat & Drink
View All Places to Eat »
Cacio e pepe lasagna combines two classics.
C'è pasta... E pasta!
Spaghetto taratatà is named for the sound of rattling sabers.
Giano Restaurant
The gnocchi here get blanketed in a sugo with braised oxtail.
Cesare al Pellegrino
Romans insist you should feel the cracked peppercorns and cheese grains on your tongue.
Flavio al Velavevodetto
Tripe is fried to a crisp.
L’Osteria della Trippa
Recent Stories
All Stories Video Podcast
Most Recent Stories
View All Stories »
Haleakalā National Park’s summit region, shrouded in the pre-dawn fog.
Beware the Legends Behind These National Park Souvenirs
24 days ago
For Aguilar-Carrasco, nature is a powerful reminder of the interconnectedness of all life.
How Can National Parks Be Made Accessible to All? AO Wants to Know.
25 days ago
Podcast: Finding ‘The Great Gatsby’ in Louisville
26 days ago
Here’s which treats you can safely lug home without risking a fine.
Dear Atlas: What International Food Can I Legally Bring Into the U.S.?
27 days ago

No search results found for
“”

Make sure words are spelled correctly.

Try searching for a travel destination.

Places near me Random place

Popular Destinations

  • Paris
  • London
  • New York
  • Berlin
  • Rome
  • Los Angeles
Trips Places Foods Stories Newsletters
Sign In Join
Places near me Random place
All the United States Massachusetts West Tisbury Heath Hen Sculpture

Heath Hen Sculpture

A memorial sculpture to heath hens stands on the spot where the last heath hen, Booming Ben, was last seen.

West Tisbury, Massachusetts

Added By
Aaron Netsky
Email
Been Here
Want to go
Added to list
The Heath Hen Sculpture   Todd McGrain
The Heath Hen Sculpture   Todd McGrain
It is based on Booming Ben, the last heath hen   Todd McGrain
Male heath hen on the Great Plain of Martha’s Vineyard, ca. 1909   Unknown
Been Here
Want to go
Added to list

About

Booming Ben, the last heath hen ever seen before the birds' extinction, was last spotted near the airport on Martha’s Vineyard. Today, a sculpture of a heath hen memorializes the lost species at that very spot.

Heath hens were once very plentiful between New Hampshire and Virginia in the United States. They were also considered very good to eat, and were nearly extinct from being hunted by 1870. (It has been suggested that a heath hen, not a turkey, was consumed at the first Thanksgiving.)

The only heath hens left by 1870 were found on Martha’s Vineyard off the coast of Massachusetts. In 1908, a Heath Hen Reserve, now Manuel F. Correllus State Forest, was established for the last 70 hens. The species rallied briefly, its numbers eventually reaching 2,000, but a devastating forest fire, along with environmental challenges like severe winters and predators, reduced the population to just 12 or 13 birds by 1927. One of these stragglers, a male named Booming Ben, was last seen on March 11, 1932.

The heath hen is one of five birds sculpted as part of Todd McGrain’s Lost Birds Project. McGrain, a Guggenheim Fellow and artist in residence at the Cornell Lab of Ornithology, was already working on bird sculptures when he read Hope is the Thing with Feathers, Christopher Cokinos’s account of how several species of birds in North America went extinct. The Lost Bird Project also includes ceramic statues of a great auk, a Labrador duck, a passenger pigeon, and a Carolina parakeet.

Each statue was placed where its species was last seen. In the case of the heath hen, that was just off what is currently a bike path in Manuel F. Correllus State Forest. Traveling collections displaying all five bird sculptures can also be seen around the country.

Related Tags

Animals Forests Islands Birds Extinct Animals Natural History Sculptures Statues Ecosystems

Know Before You Go

Enter Gate 18 or Gate 19 from Edgartown Road, walk for five to ten minutes into the forest. The GPS coordinates will help you.

Community Contributors

Added By

AaronNetsky

Edited By

MagnumPI

  • MagnumPI

Published

April 28, 2017

Edit this listing

Make an Edit
Add Photos
Sources
  • https://smithsoniangardens.wordpress.com/2014/06/04/heath-hen/
  • http://www.toddmcgrain.com
  • http://www.mass.gov/eea/agencies/dcr/massparks/region-south/the-heath-hen-sculputre-at-manuel-correlus-state-forest.html
  • http://www.lostbirdfilm.org/heath_hen_anniversary_2012
  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heath_hen#Extinction
  • http://www.mvtimes.com/2010/11/17/lost-heath-hen-rather-facsimile-back-3466/
  • https://www.bostonglobe.com/arts/books/2014/10/18/nelitnews/FoLie013EnYwCyYIqA3evJ/story.html
  • https://vineyardgazette.com/news/2012/07/23/booming-ben-heath-hen-visits-camp
  • http://www.smithsonianmag.com/smithsonian-institution/bronze-sculptures-of-five-extinct-birds-land-in-Smithsonian-Gardens-180950366/
  • http://www.mass.gov/eea/docs/dcr/parks/trails/mannyc.pdf
Heath Hen Sculpture
371 Edgartown Rd
Martha's Vineyard
West Tisbury, Massachusetts, 02568
United States
41.386383, -70.644897
Visit Website
Get Directions

Nearby Places

The Brickyard

Chilmark, Massachusetts

miles away

‘Jaws’ Bridge

Edgartown, Massachusetts

miles away

Martha's Vineyard Gingerbread Houses

Oak Bluffs, Massachusetts

miles away

Explore the Destination Guide

Photo of Massachusetts

Massachusetts

United States

Places 541
Stories 42

Nearby Places

The Brickyard

Chilmark, Massachusetts

miles away

‘Jaws’ Bridge

Edgartown, Massachusetts

miles away

Martha's Vineyard Gingerbread Houses

Oak Bluffs, Massachusetts

miles away

Explore the Destination Guide

Photo of Massachusetts

Massachusetts

United States

Places 541
Stories 42

Related Stories and Lists

The Ultimate Guide to Bird Monuments

List

By Michelle Cassidy

Related Places

  • The Great Auk Sculpture.

    Fogo Island, Newfoundland and Labrador

    Great Auk Sculpture at Fogo Island

    A memorial to a giant seabird that was hunted to extinction.

  • Der Hase

    Nuremberg, Germany

    'Der Hase'

    This strange sculpture depicts a giant nightmare hare crushing a man to death beneath its colossal bulk.

  • The great auk statue

    Iceland

    Great Auk Sculpture at Valahnúkamöl

    This five-foot-tall bronze bird is a memorial to a species that was hunted out of existence.

  • Whitman knew how to enjoy a walk in the woods.

    Tomkins Cove, New York

    Bear Mountain Walt Whitman Statue

    The poet's been ambling through these New York woods since 1940.

  • Hahn/Cock at the Walker Art Center.

    Minneapolis, Minnesota

    Hahn/Cock

    One of two giant blue cockerel statues erected with an intentional double meaning.

  • Chizhik Pyzhik close-up.

    Saint Petersburg, Russia

    Chizhik Pyzhik

    Perhaps the tiniest sculpture in Saint Petersburg is a little bronze finch inspired by a song.

  • The Sinclair Dinosaur of the Brookfield Zoo

    Brookfield, Illinois

    Brookfield Zoo's Sinclair Dinosaur

    It was originally part of a "terrible lizards" collection at the 1964 New York World’s Fair.

  • Viaje Fantástico, the bronze sculpture of a naked woman riding a rooster is in Plaza Vieja.

    Havana, Cuba

    Viaje Fantástico

    No one knows the meaning behind this giant sculpture of a nude woman with a fork riding a rooster in Havana.

Aerial image of Vietnam, displaying the picturesque rice terraces, characterized by their layered, verdant fields.
Atlas Obscura Membership

Become an Atlas Obscura Member


Join our community of curious explorers.

Become a Member

Get Our Email Newsletter

Follow Us

Facebook YouTube TikTok Instagram Pinterest RSS Feed

Get the app

Download the App
Download on the Apple App Store Get it on Google Play
  • All Places
  • Latest Places
  • Most Popular
  • Places to Eat
  • Random
  • Nearby
  • Add a Place
  • Stories
  • Food & Drink
  • Itineraries
  • Lists
  • Video
  • Podcast
  • Newsletters
  • All Trips
  • Family Trip
  • Food & Drink
  • History & Culture
  • Wildlife & Nature
  • FAQ
  • Membership
  • Feedback & Ideas
  • Community Guidelines
  • Product Blog
  • Unique Gifts
  • Work With Us
  • About
  • FAQ
  • Advertise With Us
  • Advertising Guidelines
  • Privacy Policy
  • Cookie Policy
  • Terms of Use
Atlas Obscura

© 2025 Atlas Obscura. All Rights Reserved.